


Astronomy and Assholes

by sqye



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Astronomy, Bad Jokes, Dark Humor, I do too, Multi, No Smut, Stars, alcohol use, alphys weebs out, but thats expected, everybody's a science geek!, g's a pervy perv - Freeform, gonna be some flufff, heated moments yo, in fact, not vry subtle skeletons, oc is a total geek, old cats, papyrus is off w/ mettaton hA, sexual references/jokes, sorry nope, these people need help, vry subtle plot
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-05-19
Updated: 2016-06-01
Packaged: 2018-06-09 08:21:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 7,601
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6898279
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sqye/pseuds/sqye
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Flirtatious skeletons, stars, and science mishaps. And it all ends up messing with Emma, who was just trying to get work done for once.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Pay Attention

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _Her eyes shot open, ripped from her reverie from the startled sounds of an alarm from her computer._

The readings reflected in the glasses that rested on her nose, her hazel eyes flicking beneath the reflections as she had several windows open, but focused on one where she typed away quickly at her report. The human girl twisted in the chair at the sound of a clatter, readjusting her glasses to look at her coworkers. They were all monsters, surprisingly. The monsters had emerged five years ago, and the girl had graduated from college two years after. She had quickly found work in the new lab, shy and stuttering. But now she was a common face around the place, knowing everyone's names and each machine, report, record, and everything in between by heart after her first weeks of blazing through and memorizing it all.

She had graduated from intern into the hierarchy of scientists, gradually reaching some of the highest positions and working with the brightest minds. Sure it wasn't what she really wanted to do, but it was a passion she had held onto strong, and it paid well for her to afford certain luxuries. And she had friends among the higher scientists, pleasant ones at that. That was one luxury she had never had. However, she kept any drama that occured in her social life in her social life, and not her work one. No thanks. She was too awkward as is, anyway. That's why she didn't exactly catch some advances from a coworker, too intent on work to even notice his attempts at even getting a reaction. But she didn't even bat an eye. He was only slightly deterred at first, but the his efforts renewed when he saw how she regarded him. He knew he had some chance.

The dirty blonde with a messy bun and rectangular glasses over her hazel eyes and freckles on the tops of her cheeks blinked, looking at the little yellow dinosaur that was hurriedly gathering dropped papers. Walking over, since her other associates were too busy, she assisted them, a light smile on her lips as she gave them the rest of the papers, which they accepted with a nod of their head.

"Thanks, Em," she said, and the human waved it off lightly.

"No problem at all, Alphys. Just wish those two boneheads would pay attention," she said, the last bit in a hushed tone as she gestured to the tall and short skeletons busily working away at a machine she recognized as one of their major projects, one months underway. The one wearing a beige turtleneck and blue coat (how he got their boss to allow it instead of a labcoat, Emma would never guess) turned with a grin to them, waving his tool around.

"Hey, I'm  _sans_ itive you know, and not deaf!" he teased Emma, before returning to his work, but not without a wink that didn't even register to Emma. The other skeleton, the taller of the two, Dr. Gaster, worked diligently, not even bothering to cast a glance at Alphys and Emma. He was the big boss, and had a history with all of them, except for Emma. But she wasn't one to pry, really. Unneeded drama, if you asked her.

" _Sure_ , Sans. But you're made of bones," Emma said, rolling her eyes as she returned to her chair and began looking at the readings from the machine boredly as the two worked on it. Her gaze flickered to the small windows and the storm that raged on outside, not even bothering to take note of the great bolts of lightning climbing like ladders and ropes and spiderwebs all over the clouds quite frequently. There had been several warnings and watches, but their little lab was quite safe, they had endured much worse than a storm like this.

She let herself drift into a light daze, remembering first meeting them all.

* * *

 

_A younger Emma grinned, hazel eyes bright and determined as she walked through the halls, being led by Alphys to the end door where her possible future boss awaited to interview her. The yellow dinosaur stepped aside, pulling the door open and allowing Emma to enter without a pause._

_And then all her fake confidence drained from her._

_The lightly tanned girl twirled at the loose strands of hair that never stayed in her bun, feeling nervous beneath the blank stare she felt pinning her down. She stumbled back for the door, but it was closed, and her hands wouldn't manage to find the handle to let her out. She was instead trapped in a room with a sinister-appearing skeleton, heart pounding in her ears._

_He beckoned with a hand to a seat across from him, and she noted the holes in his palms. Probably personal, she wouldn't ask. Instead, she took a few shaky steps and sat in the seat, knees together and her back rigid. Her hands shook in her lap, so she clasped them together tightly, but still they trembled, if now only slightly. She sweat lightly beneath the gaze of the skeleton, but after a moment of two, she met his gaze. She studied his features, hazel eyes flicking and taking in every detail. Smooth skull, quite unlike an actual human skeleton. But these were monsters, but humans. He had cracks from each socket, the crack on the right leaving from the top, the one of the left toward the bottom of his long face. He had his hands beneath his chin, still staring intently at Emma as she studied him, just like any scientist would._

_He startled her when he held out a skeletal hand, one she was meant to take. Startled, she looked at him with a puzzled expression._

_"You're hired," he said simply. Emma didn't even hesitate, grasping the cool bones in her warm hands in acceptance. A job was a job, especially one that had one of her few passions in it. "You're resume is outstanding, and I can tell you'll be a good addition to the labs. So, welcome, Emma Tanner, to the labs. One of your coworkers is waiting outside to take you on a tour. I'm Dr. W.D. Gaster, but you can just call me Dr. Gaster. You start now," and with that he passed her a labcoat that was just her size. She donned it before giving a light nod, and without any words, she passed into the hall._

_A weight seemed to be lifted from her shoulders, and she gasped. Coughing for a moment, she looked around. Hm, didn't he say someone would be waiting for her..? A skeleton, nearly identical to Gaster except shorter with rounder and..more laid back features rounded the corner, grinning. "Sup, newbie. I'm Sans, Sans the Skeleton," he said simply, before going off about the labs as he led her along down the maze-like corridors of the complex._

_That was the beginning to a good chapter in her life._

* * *

Her eyes shot open, ripped from her reverie from the startled sounds of an alarm from her computer. She readjusted her glasses, eyes wide at the flurry of different readings from the machine. She gazed in wonder at them, wondering if they were from the storm. But something else grabbed her attention, a reminder at the back of her mind that ripped her from her amazement and filled her with terror. She spun in the chair, leaping to her feet. Gaster and Sans were still working on the machine, and they needed to get away  _now_.

"Sans!! Gast-"

She was cut off when a great shock of lightning filled the room from outside, and a crash of earth-shaking thunder shook the floor beneath her. Her head hit the side of table just as she saw the lights flicker out with everyone terrored and panicking, reacting to something she was too out-of-it to see. But it was something that would greatly impact her and her future. Something life-changing.

And she wasn't even awake to see it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hAHAHA  
> FINALLY REALLY INCORPORATING MY INNER GEEKINESS INTO A CHARACTER  
> ALSO I CANT WRITE IN FIRST/SECOND PERSON HAHA  
> 'nyway enjoy this late-night idea that eventually deepened when i got bored in class  
> bc when am i not bored in class  
> so lets just say i thought a lot about this xD  
> also a short prologue thingy to have something up bc im excited (starting the first real chapter before i got to bed~)  
> there's a very subtle plot going on btw hehehehe


	2. Slapping Just Seems Appealing

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _She swallowed thickly, before pointing (rather rudely) at this "G" person and choking out, "Wh-Who's G?"_

Her head hurt. And I mean _hurt_. A great tsunami surging against the breaches of her mind throwing her around like a light ragdoll and a giddy child unaware that she may be ripping some of the strings or pulling them too tight. She wanted to just.. die. Not literally, it was the pain talking, but it just hurt _so much_. It was hard to explain the pain her head was in. But a hand lightly brushing her face pulled her from the pain, heaving her back into the reality. And with the return to reality came the return of her recent memories. A storm. Lightning. Thunder. Crazy readings. Power outage. Yells. Gaster. Sans.

Her eyes flew open, and she tensed when she saw a somewhat very blurry familiar skeleton face, but foreign at the same time, staring down at her, slightly worried but disinterested at the same time. She yelped, flinging herself up and instead colliding foreheads with them. She seethed with pain, falling back down on her back. But that just made it worse, since her head hit the ground once again. She rubbed her head vigorously, grumbling a little as she reached around with her hands, groping for her glasses. Why did she expect them to stay on her face when she had fallen down? She didn't know.

However, a cool hand grabbed her's and turned it so it was palm up, placing something of cold metal and glass into her grasp. She shivered, stiff. However, she quickly shoved the glasses on and slipped away from the familiar stranger. A dumb oximoron, one that perplexed her. The figure didn't move except for turning their head so they still had a full view of her. She tugged helplessly at the hem of shirt, looking frightfully around for one of her coworkers. She noted the power was back on, the machine was fried, and she could only see the skeletal person in front of her. From her knowledge, Papyrus, Sans, and Gaster were the only skeletons, and Papyrus was across the country touring with Mettaton.

However, a reassuring face poked out from behind the skeleton, and she sighed with relief when she saw Alphys. "E-Emma! You're awake, th-th-thank goodn-ness! And..it appears you've met..G-G," she stuttered, gaze flickering to the silent skeleton. Only now did Emma take him in, the black jacket clearly to short for his length. Long legs, broad shoulders, narrow hips, dark jeans, dark turtleneck, dark _everything_ , like damn. But he was familiar in a way Emma couldn't place, but strange and foreign all the same.

She swallowed thickly, before pointing (rather rudely) at this "G" person and choking out, "Wh-Who's _G?_ " She thought that, for a moment, a flash of hurt crossed the skeleton's features, but it was soon replaced with his stony face. She scuttled further back from him and Alphys, who was coming around him to sit next to her.

But just before Alphys could speak, "G" did. "I'm the fusion of Sans and Gaster. A production of the.. _incident_. Two people, but my own person at the same time. But you can call me, G, hun," he said, and with the new information, Emma placed how she felt the familar and alien feelings at once. He offered a hand, and she noted his palms were those of Gaster, with holes in them. She never had asked about it. She also noted that the sleeves were pushed up to just above his elbows, showing off the bones of the forearm.

She didn't accept his offered hand. Instead, she covered with a quick, "Hi..G. And, it's, uh, Emma. But I'm sure you know that." She waved her hand instead, stumbling to her feet. She wobbled momentarily, and G offered a hand to help, and when a wave of pain struck her, she stumbled into his awaiting arms. Immediately she stiffened, readjusting her glasses and face heating quite severely in reaction. She flung herself from his arms onto the ground, very stupidly despite graduating top of her class, an groaned in response of the next wave of pain.

G seemed overly amused at the situation, despite what had occurred before. Emma, through her pain, shot a glare at him. Instead of G going to help her, it was Alphys, holding G back before going forth herself to Emma. Emma _happily_ grabbed the yellow monster's hand, pulled to her feet. Now, as she stood behind Alphys, she could take in G.

He was tall, definitely. He had a good foot and a half on Emma, but then again she was quite short at only 5'2". His jacket was black with a fluffy hood, and she could definitely see the Sans in it. He wore a charcoal turtleneck, and she noted his rather broad shoulders. Very broad. Eyes skimming downward, she noted his waist was narrow and he wore black jeans and nice shoes, with long legs. _Gaster_ , she thought, rolling her eyes. Her hazel eyes moved to his face, where she noted it was quite Gaster-like, with small Sans qualities. He seemed to be quite smug from her earlier fluster, and she wanted to slap that shit-eating grin off his face.

"Y'know, a picture'll last longer." Slapping him seemed very appealing at the moment.

"How long have I been out?" she asked, ignoring him and her heating face as she looked back at Alphys with a curious look.

"An hour and a half. It was weird. Sans and Gaster just.. _disappeared_ , and he was in their place," Alphys said, explaining the situation. "I was doing work and looking at the readings while G was trying to wake you up. And the machine's fried, so I don't know what to do.." she said, adjusting her glasses meekly while subtly watching G.

"I need a beer," Emma responded simply, the pain coming into sharper focus. She moved to the table, leaning against it while G sat on it on the other side. Rubbing her eyes beneath her glasses, she struggled to keep the lab around her in focus. However, she quickly moved away and made a wide b-line to her messenger bag and reached into a side pocket, fishing out a bottle of Ibuprofen and unscrewing the lid. After going to the water cooler, she unceremoniously downed the correct amount of pills with a swig of water. Crushing the now-empty paper cup, she tossed it into the nearby waste bucket and looked back at the others, noting Alphys was looking over some previous readings and G was..staring at her.

"Mm. What are we going to do with Mr Googly Eyesockets?" Emma asked, gesturing to G as she moved beside Alphys and looked at the readings alongside her, trying to find the anomaly that caused this. Nothing she could make sense off, and she sighed inwardly in frustration.

"Well he can't go to Sans' house, too many chances of being seen.. And I think Gaster never left the lab.. So go home with one of us, and then we can keep an eye on him.. But, then, Undyne probably won't react well to me bringing him home. So maybe go to your apartment with you?" she asked, eyes not moving from the screen.

"Mm. As much as I don't want to, I know these tables don't make the best pillows and.. I understand you and Undyne. So, guess you'll be coming home with me tonight," she said, directing her last words at G, who stood up and shoved his skeletal hands in his jeans' pockets.

"Man, we haven't even gone on a date and you're already bringing me home," he chuckled, and Emma shot a sharp, fiery glare at him. The pain was making her snappy, and this guy was pulling her nerves taught. Usually she was a bit quiet, reserved. Sometimes apathetic. But now just frustrated and snippy. The hand that held on the back of Alphys's chair twitched slightly with her bottled anger.

"Good," Alphys said simply. "I'll go to your place first, tomorrow," she added, before saving the information to a drive and closing the laptop. Emma grabbed it, pulling the cords from it and shoving her laptop into her messenger bag. She crammed a few other papers in there as well, before fishing her keys from another side pocket before hanging her labcoat up and sliding her own long coat into the place where her labcoat had been before.

Alphys grabbed her own things, coming up beside Emma near the door. G looked to be spacing outnearby, staring at the busted machine with blank eyelights. Well, Emma didn't know, actually. She couldn't really decipher emotions from eyesockets quite as well as human eyes, but his face confirmed it. Snapping her fingers, she looked at him and put a hand on her hip and the material of her coat.

He snapped from his trance-like state, looking surprised for a short moment before hurrying over. "No smug line?" Emma asked, opening the lab door and letting Alphys exit first and go her own way, before stepping aside so G could go out. He stepped out, the stupid shit-eating grin back on in it's place. He was about to speak when she put a hand up, "Never mind. The grin's enough." She locked the lab door behind her, walking out the building's door through the lobby. He followed, slower since she was at a fast pace, but her strides were significantly shorter than his.

Their shoes lightly patted on the asphalt as they walked along, short nerdy scientist and tall lanky skeleton. _We must make an odd pair_ , she thought to herself. She could feel the heavy moisture in the air, feel it cool by a few degrees. Above, the storm had moved and revealed a hidden screen of dark colors and pinpricks of light. She slowed a moment to gaze up at the stars, a twitch of a smile on her smile as she slipped into the driver's seat.

G noticed as he got in the passenger's seat, hunching slightly so his head didn't hit the top of her little car. "Nice smile. Wish I could see it more," he said as she buckled up and started the car. The smile narrowed into a grimace on her lips, but twinkled behind her hazel eyes.

The drive was silent but for the radio and the sound of wind when Emma had the windows slightly lowered so the cool autumn air could siddle through. The town was quiet but for a few cars that passed by, but they grew more frequent as she neared more nocturnal areas of the town, where Emma's apartments were located.

As they got out from the car and walked close to the building, the group of guys that usually bugged Emma at night, annoying college frat boys who wouldn't dare do it in the day, were just about to make comments on her appearance. However, they cut themselves short when G flung an arm around her shoulders, pulling her close after observing them for a few quick moments.

She wriggled in discomfort, making small complaints, but he motioned for her silence as they walked nearer to her apartment, and she fumbled with the keys as he still held her close. She led him through the door, face hot and red. "The hell, G!? 'm not your fuckin' girlfriend and that's just fucking weird. You're a fusion of my boss and my best friend, and I have no idea where you get that fucking flirtatious attitude!" she said crossly as he closed the door.

"Those guys were obviously gonna bother you, and I stopped it. And I stopped it in a way that had a win on my side," he said with a shit-eating grin, shrugging lightly as he watched her go to her fridge and retrieve a bottle of beer. He quirked a brow bone, curious as to why Emma, of all people, would drink.

She caught his staring, taking a swig before shrugging her jacket off and tossing it toward the couch. She took a moment to bow and give a gracious swing of her arms in a sweeping gesture. "Welcome, to el apartamento de Emma. Where the wild Emma nerds off," she said, and knew deep in the recesses of her mind that she would regret this.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> tHIS TOOK SO LONG IM SORRY I SLEPT IN AND FELL ASLEEP AFTER GETTING HOME AND JUST,,,  
> SO MUCH SLEEPING


	3. The Regret is Real

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _"Stinkin' bastard! How did a combination of Sans and Gaster and up such an.. an ass! An even bigger one than Sans when he busts out the sex jokes!" she nearly screamed._

"Uh-huh," he said, chuckling at her sweeping gestures.

"Yup. Now, you take the  _couch_. I take my bed.  _You stay ten feet away from there_ ," she said simply, voice slightly stern as she set the bottle on the wood counter and went to the closet. She opened it quickly, glaring at the high shelf where the extra blankets sat.

"And what if you invite me?" he asked, grinning as he walked farther into the humble apartment.

"Don't go in. I'm either extremely,  _and I mean extremely_ , drunk or planning to kill you. Neither of those will end well," she said simply, back still to him as she tried to figure out a way to reach the blankets, considering her shortness and their high altitude.

"Oh! And don't go near the terrace! Never ever go to the terrace!  _Never!!!_ " she said simply, standing on a box. It crumbled beneath her weight, and she fell backward with a loud yelp. G was there in an instant, catching her in his arms. She sputtered, adjusting her glasses before adjusting herself so she stood. But G's arms didn't leave her until she swiped them aside, still trying to reach the blanket determinedly.

He stood behind her, a bit hunched over to keep her from scurrying away. She tried ignoring him completely, bit that obviously failed when he tried to get a little more handsy. That earned him a hard elbow to the pelvis and a shove. An angry Emma stormed past him, downing half of her remaining beer with a hard glare his way. "Stinkin' bastard! How did a combination of  _Sans_ and  _Gaster_ and up such an.. an ass! An even bigger one than Sans when he busts out the sex jokes!" she nearly screamed.

With that, she flipped him off with a steady glare. "Get yer own damned blanket! Or freeze, ya fuckin' prick," she grumbled, obviously very angry before storming to her bedroom and slamming the door shut. A few clicks later told him there were a few locks on it, and he guessed that in the neighborhood she lived in, having several locks on your door wasn't necessarily odd.

Shrugging lightly, he grabbed the blanket himself and went over to the old couch, sitting on the worn and old thing. It smelled like..lots of beer. He could already tell Emma was an alcoholic, and sighed with resignation to the couch and not her bed with a bit of a dim mood, but renewed efforts.

His attention was drawn to a cat that at on a chair nearby, a cat he hadn't noticed when first walking in. But then, most of his attention was on Emma. Or, well, more or less her ass. You couldn't blame him, it was a moderately good-looking ass that could definitely make it on the plus list of Emma's appearance. He was lucky she hadn't noticed, or he was sure his cheek bone would have ached a lot more than his pelvis.

But the cat looked..extremely old.  _Extremely_. It looked to have been black once, but with age white fur plagued and dotted his now charcoal grey pelt, giving it a roaned appearance. His muzzle was completely white, and G could tell it hadn't been white for the cat's early years. They were bony, pelt sagging, a bit stretched over their brittle bones in some places. Looking at its eyes, G could tell it was blind. But not always had been. No, their dark eyes were simply milky, and the cat stared ahead blankly. And the way it's ears looked, how they didn't twitch in any way when G snapped his phalanges, G could only guess they were deaf. How the old cat was still alive, he would never guess.

His skull turned at the sound of locks twisting and the creak of an opening door. Looking up, the skeleton saw Emma in what appeared to be her sleepwear, meaning a camisole and fluffy pants that sagged and his her feet, all but for her toes. "I'm not apologizing. I forgot something," she said simply, scooping the cat into her arms and scratching them behind the the ears, which they purred with quiet delight as she carried them along, cooing. "Good boy, Shad," she said gently, pressing her face into his bony back for a moment.

"How old is he?" G interrupted, generally interested from his place on the couch.

She looked up, eyes a tad surprised beneath the black frame and shining glass of her glasses. "Shadow? Twenty-two. Had him since I was five, when he was a kitten," she said simply, walking back towards her room. "Feel free to watch TV and grab something from the fridge.. Just turn off the lights before you go to sleep," she said softly, before slipping into her room. There was no clicking except for the door slipping into position.

G simply shrugged, guessing she forgot. However, his thoughts drifted to the cat.  _Damn, twenty-two. Old cat_ , he thought, before drifting off into a light sleep with a last look at the clock. 10:37.

* * *

Emma awoke like every other morning, with her sitting up against her backrest of pillows with her hand stroking Shadow's neck. She smiled at the old cat and his warm purrs. Good, he was alive another day. Another day she wouldn't have to sleep without something comforting and warm and  _just for her._ Another day and night she didn't feel alone.

Picking the old feline up and settling in against her, she set him on her dresser as she shrugged a sweatshirt on to protect against the chilling air of the apartment and putting her feet into her fuzzy star slippers. No way was she wasting money on heat when she had a cheaper alternative: her clothes. Picking the cat up once again, she swaddled him in a soft, comfy blanket to keep him warm against the cool air. As the day went along, maybe she would turn up the thermostat for him, but not yet.

Going to her curtains, she realized the light shining through was  _too_ bright for five a.m., when she usually woke up. Looking at her alarm, she blanched when she saw it was  _eight._ She had slept in by _three_   _hours!?_

Screaming, she burst out of her room with fuming features beneath her glasses. But the anger drained from her face when she saw Alphys, G, and Undyne sitting at the counter on the bar stools, happily eating some French toast. The smell of bacon and eggs met her, along with coffee, and she felt her anger replaced by a sudden hunger. She hadn't eaten dinner, had she?

Coming over, Shadow still swaddled nicely in his blanket and in her arms, she looked at them. "What..?" she said, utterly confused. She then realized she was dressed in was dressed in a sweatshirt, fluffy periwinkle pants with lambs and clouds on them, and star slippers in front of  _her boss and coworkers and one of her coworker's girlfriend._ Undyne and Alphys had seen her in them when the two came over for Anime night and usually stayed over. But Sans - and definitely not Gaster - hadn't seen her like this, and now their  _pervy fusion_ could see her in all her sleepy glory.

"Oh bejeezles," she muttered, pouring herself a steaming mug of coffee once Alphys spoke up. She added some sugar and a lot of milk, turning the dark brown liquid a steaming light brown, much softer and less sharp and threatening, in a way.

"O-oh! I told Undyne about G and she wanted to see him! So I called and he said it was alright, and decided to make breakfast. We didn't know you were asleep, but he said it was fine.. Guess you're awake now, though, so its fine! We only got here a half hour ago, though," she said, stutter temporarily gone as she spoke quickly in explanation.

"Uh-huh," she said, grabbing some French toast, eggs, and bacon on her plate after setting Shadow on the counter in his burrito-roll of blanket and cat. She sat on the other side of the counter, occasionally slipping some food to Shadow. She sipped mindlessly at her coffee, wiping her mouth with her sleeve. Fuck manners, Alphys and Undyne knew her and G was acting like he didn't exist at the moment.

"We can watch some anime while we eat!!" Undyne announced grabbing Alphys's bag and rushing to the DVD player and shoving one in. Emma didn't notice in her slight grogginess and business with her food that G was slowly diddling around the counter until he was next to her, eating all the same.

Emma gave her cat another bit of her meal. He purred, milky eyes staring blankly at her as the deaf and blind feline ate it. She hummed contently, still a bit sleepy. Despite having gone to bed at ten, she hadn't gone to sleep until 4:30, too alert for G trying anything sneaky. With only four hours behind her and much of the coffee's caffeine nulled greatly by the extensive amount of milk in it, she was tipping hopelessly in her tire.

G grinned when she fell against him, snoring light into his sweater as her rat's nest of hair and thick sweater cushioned her from his poking ribs. He cautiously reached an arm around her, setting it around her waist and tugging her close to him, a smug grin on his features. Her hand never left Shadow's scruff, so the cat made no move to protest against the slight movement. Alphys and Undyne were too busy watching anime, having migrated from the counter to the couch.

However, after a minute or two of lack of food, the cat did protest. He meowed loudly, the sound raspy and strained. Emma jolted up, against G and his arm. When her eyes fell on the thing keeping her in the position against G - his arm - she lturned her head, and he shrugged with a grin at her fuming glare.

She mercilessly slapped him, regretting ever letting him stay with her in the first place as she tore herself free of his arm and somehow balanced her plate, mug, and Shadow and walked toward the couch to next to Alphys and Undyne. But, oddly enough, she found herself regretting having no wait on her side or the closeness or even the presence. But whatever, that was  _stupid_ , she was a clingy little shit and she knew it. She would just resign herself to cold space, the only warmth being herself and Shadow, who seemed to orbit around her in a way, never too far away.

She suddenly noted feeling like a star.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> im siccckkkk  
> i woke up (completely) @ two in the afternoon  
> ughhhh


	4. SCIENCE!!! (and brinner)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _Looking down on him, she realized even _sitting_  he was tall, almost her height when she was standing. But then again, she was still  _taller_  and she savored the short moments of being the tall one, the one looking down upon the other. An empowering feeling, only fueling her cause._

After breakfast and some anime (along with Emma completing her hygenial duties), Emma looked over at Alphys, who was leaning into Undyne, engrossed by the anime playing onscreen. "Hey, Alphys, wanna head to the back? I don't feel like heading to the lab today, and I've got everything worth looking at on my laptop," she suggested, with a wave to the fourth door across from her own near the end of the hall, just before the thick curtain hiding the balcony from view.

Thanks to Sans' memories of coming to Emma's with Alphys, and sometimes on his own, G knew what the room held. It was like a thinking room. A place to think. A corner devoted to books, some bean bag chairs, a desk, a filing cabinet.. And lots of star charts on the walls. Emma had a bit of an astronomical hobby, all her friend's knew it. Emma was usually back there working if she wasn't at the labs, sleeping, or out on the balcony.

Alphys looked up, a tad surprised at Emma's rather sudden words. The pale sunflower yellow dinosaur looked questioningly at her girlfriend. The fish woman, with her dark blue scales and crimson, flaming hair, intimidating as she was, nodded with a wave of the hand not draped around Alphys. Her yellowed eyes never truly left the screen of the T.V., but she did plant a kiss on the side of Alphys's crest before her shark-like grin restated itself as the muscled fish-woman watched.

Alphys blushed slightly, even more at Emma's light giggle. Then the scientist hopped down from the old couch, and Emma set the burrito that was Shadow into Undyne's lap, knowing the fish-woman wouldn't mind stroking him from time to time or letting the old toot just sit on her in his burrito wrap. The fish-woman merely swatted Emma away with a grumble when she lingered just a little too long in front of the screen.

G made a move to get up, but Emma narrowed her hazel eyes and walked over, standing in front of him so close he couldn't stand up. Looking down on him, she realized even  _sitting_  he was tall, almost her height when she was standing. But then again, she was still  _taller_  and she savored the short moments of being the tall one, the one looking down upon the other. An empowering feeling, only fueling her cause. G looked up questioningly at her, a tad confused. "What?"

"No. You stay here while Alphys and I work. I don't need you messing with stuff," she said sharply, adjusting the sleeves of her sweatshirt. Obviously she meant herself. She didn't want him fucking flirting with her, as it made her obviously flustered and goodness she  _hated_  that. She then recognized the fact she  _probably_  didn't look as imposing as she thought, in the sweatshirt, innocent sleep pants, and star slippers. But still, she stood her ground over him. Quite sassily, too.

"W-well, E-Em.. We m-m-might be a-able to use h-h-him to help a l-little. I mean, he is a c-combination of Sans and G-Gaster," Alphys suggested softly, her blush long since faded. Emma wanted to shoot a glare at her, but knew she wouldn't be able to so such a thing at her close and long-term friend five years strong. Besides, Alphys was too cute and sweet to really earn such a thing.

"Eurgh.." Emma grunted, turning away before she could see G's look of soft confusion twist into a smug grin. She was tempted to slap him, bust knew that hitting bone again with her hand would hurt. She would never admit how her hand ached for a good amount of time after slapping him. Never, she was too prideful to ever admit to such a thing.

Instead of thinking of stuff like that, though, she muttered a quick "Alright, then," and trudged toward the door, gently opening it. She paused before going in, reaching her left hand up and tugging the end of the curtain just a little bit more, so that the light of the outer world barely squeezed in through the small slit. If light could make it, someone could see out, and she definitely, no matter how much she trusted Alphys and Undyne (not G), she wouldn't let them out there or let them see out there. It was too personal.

After tugging the curtain, she sighed discreetly and passed through the open place. Alphys followed suit, G passing by Undyne as he walked by in long strides. Down the hall and through the door, followed by a soft click of the door closing. Undyne immediately switched to one of the most violent animes they had brought when the others had left.

Inside the room, Emma sat in a worn rolling chair at the desk in the top right corner of the room. Her left hand traced the grain of the wood table absently as she focused more intently on the computer in front of her, opening specific files, printing documents and papers on the printer at her left, and just preparing for what was about to go down.

While she busily did so, Alphys had shuffled to an orange bean bag chair, drowning herself in it as she sat down and awaited Emma to finish getting everything ready. G sauntered through the door, smug grin from earlier still on his face as he stood near the door.

When Emma was done, she ignored G's presence coldly and looked to Alphys, giving her a few of the printed papers. Emma looked at the screen and at the papers, then toward the screen. Her brow scrunched together, her eyes narrowed beneath the black frames of her glasses.

"How..? I get that Sans and Gaster were fused. I mean, their magic is so similar, they're both skeletons, they were both working on the machine at the time, and more.. It's only most probable that if anyone in the room were to fuse, it would be those skeletons. But how? I know the machine was magic-based, but it was  _human_  magic-based. If anything, some weird shit should be going on with me. I was the only human in close vicinity, and with our research we know there's an infinitesimal bit of magic in each human. It should have done some weird magic thingy to me. Not..latched onto Gaster and Sans' magic and emfused them/em," she said, gaze switching between screen and paper.

"Perhaps we did some miscalculations..? The machine was a work in progress, even if near finish, perhaps it did not yet recognize the difference between Monster magic and Human magic. Besides, yours would be much harder to reach. The machine could have just done the easier motive, going for either Sans or Gaster. The other must have been dragged into it if the machine mistook their two magic signatures as one powerful one," Alphys suggested. The yellow dinosaur then looked at G, who had been quietly listening the whole time.

"Mm. I can tell you one thing.. It's  _weird_. Strange, to say the least. At times I feel like one single person.. Y'know..me. But then, sometimes, I feel sort of..divided. Certain feelings, thoughts, or memories from one side and then the same for the other. And I haven't even thought about testing my magic out yet," he said, voice soft at times, and sometimes a tad raised. Emma could tell it was hard to describe for him, and decided not to pry into something like that.

Emma proceeded to then make herself comfortable. She propped her feet on the corner of the desk, crossing her ankles and letting the tips of her starred slippers brush at her angled feet. She leaned back in the chair, adjusting it appropriately to her new position before casting a look at the two monsters. "You two know a hell of a lot more about magic, monsters, and souls, so start singin' like canaries for me," she said simply, twisting so she could type what she heard.

Her hands hovered over the worn keys, brushing them slightly with the tips of her small hands. She paused to look at them. Worn down, plain nails, a small scar on her right wrist, a constant cracking noise whenever she twisted the right wrist thanks to it not healing properly after two breaks in the same place, the first going unnoticed for two weeks before the deepening of the break occurred, sending her to the doctor against her will. The pain of it for the following months led her to start writing and doing things left-handed, so now she was ambidextrous. Now she just sort of..alternated. Hm.

Then Alphys went into great detail of the topics, each word being transcribed into Emma's laptop for her later reference when she needed it. G chimed in a little bit, but mostly remained quiet as he leaned against the wall, a bit hypnotized by the steady and fluid movement of Emma's hands as she copied down Alphys's words.

Emma didn't seem to notice she had just ordered her higher-ups around like the Miss Bossy she could become when deep in science.  _Oh fucking well_.

* * *

Alphys went on for about three hours, and hadn't even finished when Emma suggested they eat lunch. And that Undyne was probably getting bored. G had hit on Emma a bit during those three hours, subtly trying to make his way next to her. However, she would always politely ask Alphys to pause and would remain seated, turning and putting a foot on G's sternum with a steady glare and pushing him away.

He had said after a few glares, "Y'know, it would be a pity if your face froze in that mean glare. Waste of perfectly good beauty."

She didn't even flush, too peeved at him. "Good riddance," had been her response, and then she waved, gesturing Alphys, who had paused, to start speaking again.

Back to the present, Emma stood, saving the five page document of magic, monster, and soul facts before shutting off the computer. She stood, putting her hands on her back and stretching, earning a few relieving cracks before rolling her neck. G cringed nearby, and she cocked a brow. Raising her right wrist, she purposefully moved it a certain way so she got a satisfyingly loud crack each time. G scurried from the room, obviously a bit distressed as Emma earned the right to grin smugly.

Looking over at Alphys, who was giggling softly, she cocked a brow. "What're you laughin' at, Alphy?" she questioned, but the yellow dinosaur simply scurried from the room before Emma could further demand an answer. Emma cocked a brow, before giving a shrug into the thin air and following.

"-dunno, maybe we could eat out? Kinda wanna check out that new Italian place," Undyne said as Emma rounded into the living room. Shadow was out of his burrito, sprawled comfortably over the worn rocking chair with several pillows and blankets piled over it in dimly lit corner. Emma smiled softly, tugging the hem of her sweatshirt as she shuffled in.

"Hm?" she questioned, having only caught the last bit of the conversation.

Undyne seemed to light up, nodding aggressively. "Emma! I demand we go to the new Italian place in downtown!"

"Cool. I can dig that," Emma said simply. "When we leavin'?" she questioned.

"Now!" Undyne proclaimed, but Emma threw her hands up in protest.

"Let me get decent! I'm in my fuckin' pajamas, for Pete's sake!" she blurted out. On the edge of her peripheral vision, she saw a smirking G take out a pack of cigarettes and a lighter. Before the flame of the lighter could ignite, the one behind Emma's eyes did. "Nonono, you fucking  _bastard_! Outside if you're gonna do that bullshit!" she said, stalking over and gripping his wrist tightly in her hand before wrenching the door open and shoving him outside into the dreary and cold weather of the late winter. She wasn't at all startled by the fact she had just thrown a guy out of her home who was more than a foot and a half taller than her.

G had little time to protest, already thrown out before he could process what was going on. Well, that was...weird? Unexpected, to say the very least. He cocked a nonexistent brow, wondering why Emma had immediately thrown him out for no apparent reason. Looking as his hands, he realized quickly. Because he was going to smoke, but that didn't answer his question about why she was sensitive about that. Why would it matter to her if he smoked? It was no worse than her alcoholism, so if she was trying to get him not to smoke, she was being a hypocrite. And that wasn't Emma (most of the time). But then, if she was trying to get him to stop, why would she put him outside..? He shook the confusing thoughts away.

A few moments later, Alphys and Undyne popped out with their stuff. Undyne gave a toothy grin, chuckling. "Man, she threw you out! Just like that! She wasn't even trying, and she just threw you out! Priceless!" she laughed hardily, laughter infectious as Alphys broke into giggles. "And she also told us not to let you in while she showers and changes! Fuhuhuh!" Undyne cackled, just as G noted the blinds being more tightly shuttered.

About fifteen minutes of Undyne, Alphys, and G talking about anime (well, mostly Undyne and Alphys) in the cool, gloomy weather, Emma popped out. She looked pretty good for the inhuman amount of time it took her to get dressed. She had an olive sweater on, her usual long, beige coat, blue jeans, and nice leather boots. Her hair was in it's usual messy bun, but was a tad damp from her half-fast drying as she was in a rush to get out before Undyne barged in and dragged her out against her will not even ready. The black frames of her glasses rested snugly over her eyes, making the bright hazel center and deep silver of her outer eye more prominent, since usually it looked purely hazel. She smelled clean and she felt just that, no longer groggy and sleepy.

" _Olive_  the green," G chuckled, earning a hard elbow as Emma brushed by, releasing an  _'oomf.'_

"Bad pun. You're trying too hard," she chuckled, giving a flick of her hand as she left G behind in trade for Alphys and Undyne as they walked to the parking lot.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i wrote this with a really bad headache so excuse the horribleness  
> also hey school let's out on the fifteenth and my b-day is three days later so lots of free time?? HELL YEAH  
> ILL HAVE SO MUCH TIME BC I HAVE NO LIFE :D


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